Former Raiders and 49ers defensive end Arden Key has generated extensive interest this offseason. He is set to make the Chiefs his latest visit, Field Yates of ESPN.com reports.
The Chiefs and Key will huddle up Friday. Kansas City has a need opposite Frank Clark, who has not lived up to expectations since the Chiefs’ 2019 trade, and the team might face the prospect of its top defensive end being suspended in connection with his two gun-related arrests last year.
Once a first-round prospect, Key fell to Round 3 in 2018 and did not produce consistently for the Raiders. With the 49ers, however, the LSU product delivered an interesting contract year. He finished with 6.5 sacks and 17 quarterback hits — far and away career-high marks — and that has led to offseason interest. The Lions, Ravens and Jaguars have met with Key since free agency opened last week.
Kansas City traded for Melvin Ingram and saw the ex-Charger Pro Bowler do well to stabilize its pass rush, allowing the team to end its misbegotten Chris Jones-at-defensive end experiment. Ingram’s supplementary impact aside, the Chiefs still ranked 29th in sacks last season. Ingram is a free agent. Given Clark’s inconsistency and potential availability issues, the team certainly needs help on the edge.
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